If you like Bryce, buying the book "Real World Bryce 4" by Susan Kitchens will help you greatly with all the basics plus a lot more besides. Although it only covers Bryce version 4, it is very informative. Better than the manual.

Yes, PJF’s suggestion in using the CTRL button is your best option, however, some times when an object has many parts, and has become ungrouped earlier on in your project, it can be quite tricky to re-group all the parts again – particularly if they are buried within other object meshes.

In such instances, I find that using the Shift button in lieu with the CTRL works best. The steps would go like this: first, hover your cursor over the object part you want (as PJF says) using the CTRL; second, now click again on another part related to the same object where the list again shows up, however, this time hold down the Shift button and choose the part from the list presented. You’ll see that both parts are now grouped when the Shift is used, and you can continue to do this (that is CTRL, Shift, CTRL, Shift...etc.,) over and over again with all the other parts of the initial object group.

I have just started using Bryce., not making anything complicated, yet, started making two spheres with some fancy texture to them (like that: http://www.daz3d.com/forums/discussion/9728/) with the camera inside the spheres and suddenly I could not select the camera any more to change the focal length.

We use those buttons all the time and forget how long it took to find them when we started.

Yes, Horo, there are a lot of things difficult to find out how it works.

Like Boolean operations. Actually its quite easy but I believe most other programs do it differently.
Or those textures. The deep texture editor seems to be very nice but its difficult to understand and I would really need a tutorial for that.

We use those buttons all the time and forget how long it took to find them when we started.

Yes, Horo, there are a lot of things difficult to find out how it works.

Like Boolean operations. Actually its quite easy but I believe most other programs do it differently.
Or those textures. The deep texture editor seems to be very nice but its difficult to understand and I would really need a tutorial for that.

FWIW, I've found the Bryce Product Bryce Master Series - The Great Hall http://www.daz3d.com/shop/bryce-masters-series-great-hall to be very good at teaching Boolean operations as it walks you thru how to build the scene described by the product from Booleans. What I liked most was that the author described things such that it was very easy to understand and follow, at least for me.

As for the DTE there are a number of tutorials here for that as well as many other things

I've got a PDF about the DTE, but I can't remember where I got it. Something tells me it was from Horo or David.

There are a couple of tutorials in my website (see sig). Go to Raytracing > Tutorials

I've also set up a container for Bryce relevant documents recently. The DTE document GussNemo refers to, can be found there. The direct link would be http://www.horo.ch/docs/mine/pdf/DTE.pdf and it is a 84 page PDF which comes at 23 MB.

Thanks for the links and the PDF.
I know the bryce-tutorials link. David B has promoted it in some of his youtube videos. There are loads and loads of videos. You dont know where to start first watching or reading.

Just downloaded Horo's link. It looks very concise (merci vielmal) and its a lot to read but a bit of science is good for the brain.